In the TV movie based on S.A. author Teri Wilson's modern-day spin on 'Pride & Prejudice,' Mr. Darcy is played by the dashing Ryan Paevey. The TV movie bows tonight at 8 on Hallmark Channel.Credit: Copyright 2015 Crown Media United States, LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss less

In the TV movie based on S.A. author Teri Wilson's modern-day spin on 'Pride & Prejudice,' Mr. Darcy is played by the dashing Ryan Paevey. The TV movie bows tonight at 8 on Hallmark Channel.Credit: Copyright ... more

Photo: Bettina Strauss / Bettina Strauss

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A startlingly buff Ryan Paevey being filmed for his Darcy water moment in 'Unleashing Mr. Darcy' on Hallmark Channel.

A startlingly buff Ryan Paevey being filmed for his Darcy water moment in 'Unleashing Mr. Darcy' on Hallmark Channel.

Owner Elizabeth Chambers (left) serves up special cupcakes as Teri Wilson signs copies of her new novel "Unleashing Mr. Darcy." The setting: Alamo Heights' Bird Bakery, the spot owned by Chambers and movie star husband ,Armie Hammer, where Wilson does most of her writing. December 27, 2013. less

Owner Elizabeth Chambers (left) serves up special cupcakes as Teri Wilson signs copies of her new novel "Unleashing Mr. Darcy." The setting: Alamo Heights' Bird Bakery, the spot owned by Chambers and movie ... more

Photo: TOM REEL

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Tune in tonight: Sexy TV star embraces S.A. woman's tale

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SAN ANTONIO – Memo to San Antonio TV viewers: Why not make a date with a rich and tension-filled romance that sprang from the imagination of an Alamo Heights woman?

“Unleashing Mr. Darcy,” a modern American take on the antagonistic-turned-passionate relationship at the center of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” bows at 8 tonight on Hallmark Channel.

Teri Wilson, longtime S.A. resident and the author of the book the movie’s based on, is crossing her fingers that the tune-in will be hefty enough to convince Hallmark to pick up another one of her many stories. She’s celebrating her exciting accomplishment, in fact, by hosting a special screening for friends at a local theater.

I already have seen “Unleashing Mr. Darcy,” and found it not only entertaining, but swoon-worthy, thanks to an appealing cast led by Ryan Paevey of “General Hospital” fame, Cindy Busby (“Heartland” and “Cedar Cove”) and Frances Fisher (“Titanic”), who’s at her bitchy best.

Paevey, who plays Darcy, said he had a blast helping to bring this particular spin on the Austen tale to life on the small screen.

“I love being part of the ‘Pride and Prejudice’ universe,” the tall, dark and handsome actor told me at a Hallmark party held for TV critics in Pasadena, Calif.

He and Busby more than aptly deliver the prickly repartee and emotional conflict that eventually electrify their climactic kiss in the film.

Moreover, dog lovers will feel they died and went to pooch heaven. Much of the story centers around a series of dog shows that spotlight all sorts of colorful and cuddly breeds.

Busby portrays Elizabeth Scott, a teacher down on her luck after an unjust accusation at her school lands her not only out of a job, but also in potential legal hot water.

Helping to tide her over during this tough time is an invitation to present a friend’s dog at some upcoming New York shows.

The judge, Donovan Darcy, comes across as aristocratic and rude, and a chain of misunderstandings unfold during the competition, complicating their undeniable attraction to one another.

Get a taste of the movie here:

Paevey said he’s a longtime fan of the novel that inspired Wilson’s story. “Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’ came into my life in school as an assignment,” he said.

“But it’s a book you revisit several times in your life. As you accrue life experience, you gain perspective and see it with new eyes,” he added.

He’s also “a huge animal person,” he noted. “I turn into a child when I’m around them. And being on set every day with 50 dogs was pretty awesome.”

Author Wilson also is a dog lover. Her own Cavalier King Charles Spaniels were an inspiration for the movie.

Elizabeth’s pup in the film is even named after Wilson’s dog, Bliss.

Oh, and fans of the movie and TV adaptations of “Pride and Prejudice” also can look forward to what’s become known as the sexy Darcy-and-water moment.

In the Colin Firth series, which aired over three nights on A&E cable network back in ’96, his Darcy takes a spontaneous plunge into a lake that leaves his white shirt clinging appealingly to his physique, causing Elizabeth, whom he runs into afterward, to blush uncharacteristically.

In the more recent 2005 film adapation, starring Keira Knightley, a soaking wet Darcy declares his love for Elizabeth while standing in the pouring rain.

In “Unleashing Mr. Darcy,” the water moment happens when Elizabeth unexpectedly runs into Darcy around the pool. He looks distractingly buff in his swim trunks.

“It was so cold — between 7 and 10 degrees Fahrenheit,” Paevey said of the shoot’s wintry day in a small town near Vancouver.

“I had to grit my teeth. But they were lovely and accommodating during breaks with heaters and nice soft towels and robes.”